General practice is the cornerstone of successful primary health care and is critical to ensuring a high-quality, equitable and sustainable health system. This is particularly true in rural areas, where GPs are often required to practice an extended scope of medical care, including areas that, in urban settings, would typically be referred to specialists.

The Australian Government appointed Australia’s first National Rural Health Commissioner to advise on the development of a National Rural Generalist Pathway (the pathway) – a dedicated training pathway to attract, retain and support rural generalist doctors who provide primary care, emergency medicine and other specialist services in regional, rural and remote areas.

The department engaged AHA to evaluate the pathway. The evaluation aims to assess the short-term (within 2 years) outcomes of the pathway reforms and inform future policy direction. This includes:

• assessing the implementation of the pathway components
• assessing the appropriateness, effectiveness and efficiency of the pathway components in meeting the needs of rural generalists to enable them to deliver quality healthcare in rural, remote and regional communities
• identifying any barriers and enablers to the pathway’s implementation and outcomes.

The evaluation focuses on 3 core components of the pathway implementation

• Component 1: the recognition of rural generalist medicine as a sub-specialty of general practice
• Component 2: the establishment or expansion of coordination units for rural generalist training within each jurisdiction
• Component 3: the expansion of the Rural Junior Doctor Training Innovation Fund Rural Generalist (RJDTIF RG), which is designed to expand junior doctor rotations in primary care settings.

AHA will develop a monitoring and evaluation framework for the pathway, conduct a literature review, and analyse rural general practice and training data from multiple sources.

We will also use a variety of methods to consult with a range of stakeholders, including:

• conducting baseline and follow-up surveys
• speaking with component and data custodians
• interviewing key rural health and general practice organisations.

It is intended that the framework will have long-term utility for the pathway.

For more information, email NRGPevaluation@ahaconsulting.com.au